There will be little holiday cheer for several Mackenzie-Childs employees who were laid off just days before Christmas.

A spokeswoman for the Aurora company, which specializes in hand-crafted ceramics and tableware, would only confirm that fewer than 20 people were released.

Aurora Mayor Thomas Gunderson said the layoffs indicated how badly small community-based businesses are struggling to survive.

"Given the state of the economy, the layoffs don't surprised me," Gunderson said. "It's tough to be a business that operates in a small town or village ... There's no question that if businesses are struggling in the big cities, than they have got to really be struggling in the small areas."

The layoffs come more than a month after the Aurora Inn announced its plans to return to seasonal operations to deal with a drop in tourism. Nearly 16 full-time and 24 part-time employees were affected by the change.

The inn, which is only open for special occasions this winter, will re-open for regular business on May 1.

Because Aurora relies on tourism and college students for revenue, Gunderson said the winter holiday's can be tough for local businesses.

And when local businesses struggle, Gunderson said local taxpayers also feel the pain.

"It hasn't effected us yet, but there are concerns that the loss in sales tax compared to when we were growing will mean we have less money in our budgets next year," he said. "We rely on sales tax, its our largest source of income outside of local taxes. Every town or village will tell you the same thing, and we are all going to feel the trickle-down effect of this economy."